Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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BLUEGOLDONLINE.COM MAY 2022 11 UNDER THE DOME Wide Receiver Joe Wilkins Jr. Suffers Injury, Out Until August The already thin Notre Dame spring wide receiver roster took another hit after just five practices. Graduate student Joe Wilkins Jr. was sidelined for the remainder of Notre Dame's spring practices due to a Lisfranc injury suffered on his mid-foot March 26. He had surgery a few days later to repair it. Wilkins is expected back in time for the regular season, head coach Marcus Freeman said, and plans to return to action sometime in August. Notre Dame played the rest of spring with five healthy scholar- ship receivers without Wilkins, who worked with the first-team offense at boundary receiver in the lone practice fully open to media. Graduate student Av- ery Davis did not participate in spring drills because he was still recovering from ACL surgery. Graduate students Braden Lenzy and Matt Salerno, along with sophomores Deion Col- zie, Lorenzo Styles and Jayden Thomas, were the remaining healthy receivers after Wilkins went down. Freshman Tobias Merriweather arrives in June. Walk-on Conor Ratigan earned second-team reps in the open practice. T h e 6 - fo o t -1 , 19 5 - p o u n d Wilkins returned for spring practice after MCL surgery last October. He suffered the injury in a loss to Cincinnati last fall. Prior to it, he had four catches for 61 yards and a touchdown. In 2020, he caught seven passes for 63 yards and one touchdown. He appeared in eight total games from 2018-19, with two punt returns and no catches. He has two seasons of eligibility remaining, including 2022. "You hear about the injuries he's had, but what a tough kid," Freeman said. "He can overcome adversity. He's in a good mind frame." Wilkins' breakout game was a four-catch, 39-yard outing in the 2020 opener against Duke. He caught only three more passes all season, though. His 2021 offseason was a success by all accounts. He accumulated more summer workout points than any wide receiver on the roster. His efforts led to a spot in the rotation in a thin receiver room. Wilkins averaged 16 snaps per game in the four full contests before his injury. The highlight was a 23-yard touchdown on a jump ball in the opener at Florida State. Notre Dame signed Wilkins as a three-star recruit in the 2018 class. He was the No. 81 cornerback and No. 750 overall player per the On3 Consensus. The Irish moved him to receiver before his freshman year fall camp. — Patrick Engel Notre Dame-Centric NIL Collective 'FUND' Launches With Brady Quinn, Tom Mendoza's Support The powers that be surrounding the Notre Dame have officially broken into the NIL sphere. A website called fundfoundation.org launched April 18 to signal the start of a nonprofit — Friends of the University of Notre Dame Inc. (FUND) — that uses the name, image and like - ness (NIL) of Notre Dame student-athletes to help promote charitable organizations they are passionate about. According to the website, Irish student-ath - letes are interviewed, selected and approved by FUND's board of directors, which includes Notre Dame's business school namesake Tom Mendoza and former Irish football players Pat Eilers and Jason Sapp per The Athletic's Pete Sampson. Those student-athletes are matched with select charities. They're compensated for attending fundraising events, participating in social media campaigns and volunteering at charity sites. The charities themselves receive financial donations from FUND. FUND is not affiliated with the university. The organization uses tax-deductible donations to give the student-athletes their stipends and to support the charities involved. However, FUND is backed by former Notre Dame quarterback Brady Quinn. Quinn envisions FUND as a way for Irish ath - letes to carve out their space in the world of NIL while leaving a legacy greater than anything that could come about via more selfish NIL endeavors available elsewhere. "The goal is to provide these student-athletes with the opportunity to be able to take a portion of their time and receive compensation for it, but really falling under the guidelines of God, Country, Notre Dame — causes that are bigger than yourself," Quinn told The Athletic. "And that's what this is all about." The FUND website leaves visitors with this message: "The loyalty of Notre Dame's nation - wide fan base is powerful. We can do more to support our student-athletes. Consider making a contribution to the FUND Foundation. Your donations directly benefit Notre Dame student- athletes who are making a difference in our community." A few prominent Irish players have already been expressive in the ways they give back to the South Bend community. Sophomore offen - sive lineman Blake Fisher regularly volunteers his time at the local YMCA. Sophomore running back Logan Diggs is a virtual dancer for a Center for Homeless "Dancing With Our Stars" event. Now, Fisher and Diggs can be compensated via FUND for their charitable contributions if they're selected by the board of directors. — Tyler Horka Wilkins suffered a Lisfranc injury to his mid-foot early in spring practice. PHOTO BY CHAD WEAVER